Madeline Gardner Brings Fashion Week to Farmingdale

In the spirit of Fashion Week, New York City designer Madeline Gardner previewed her new Mori Lee spring collection at .

Dozens of local residents and admirers of Gardner's designs poured into the Farmingdale store Saturday afternoon for an all-day trunk show and an exclusive runway show that started at 2 p.m. Gardner has sold her Mori Lee line in Estelle's for nearly 15 years, and is more than pleased with how their relationship has grown.

"They represent our company beautifully, and they have a great customer base so we get a huge variety of styling here," the designer said of Estelle's only location. "This store is very unique."

Estelle, the store's owner and original founder, is proud to carry Mori Lee products in her store and said that the prom dresses and wedding gowns are particularly great sellers. "We buy a lot of her gowns and she appreciates our input," she said. "We tell her what is selling well in our store."

Gardner, a New Jersey native who works out of her SoHo studio in Manhattan, has been designing dresses for nearly two decades. Even as a child, Gardner aspired to be a professional designer and soon after her graduation from The Fashion Institute of Technology, her career took flight.

She started her career designing junior cocktail dresses and eventually progressed to the wide selection of wedding gowns, prom gowns, bridesmaid and flower girl dresses and homecoming gowns she creates today.

The runway show was the second collaboration for Estelle's and Mori Lee and certainly improved since 2010. Over 30 new spring styles were showcased by a team of Estelle's fashion coordinators who served as models for the day. The bright colors, exquisite detail and billowy bottoms add a unique feel that rival designs simply don't possess.

Marianne Meyer, a Levittown resident, attended the show with her niece for a sneak preview of potential sweet sixteen dresses. "The dresses are really beautiful," she said. "The designs aimed at young girls are very fun."

In addition to the display of dresses and extravagant fashion show, Estelle's provided goody bags to each attendee and raffled off a brand new Apple iPad.

Estelle's Dressy Dresses holds similar trunk shows from various designers, including their own line of dresses each week. More information on future events can be found on their website.